It is the Autumnal Equinox, the day whereupon the Treasury of Apollon recognizes our Lord Apollon’s Departure from this world. But it is not a time of immediate departure, but rather, the beginning of a tour of gradual withdrawal. In our tradition, this withdrawal ends on the final day of Aegletia, when we bid Him a fond farewell.

He has been with us throughout the year, from Theoxenia onwards, and He has guided us through our unique transformations and circumstances. Now, as winter approaches, He turns His mind toward other affairs, and other responsibilities.

He is our Lord, and though we, as a species, will be in His thoughts from time to time, along with the other inhabitants of this world, Apollon must now take His leave of us, and travel to His far-northern home in Hyperborea.

So, dear friends, take a moment to acknowledge Apollon’s waning light. Acknowledge His presence as His attention shifts, and be thankful for His power, His love, and all that He gives to our world. For He is the Civilized God, but now, He again becomes the Wild God– the Wolf, Lykeios, lurking in the twilight.

Again, He is Telchinios, the harsh winds of winter approaching. Once more, He is Aegletes, the sun falling under the horizon. And He is Anax, the Northern King, who will watch this and other worlds from afar. Acknowledge His seasonal shift, and be consoled by the truth of His eminent return, next year, when Theoxenia comes again.

And please, if it suits you, join with us in celebration of our Lord’s Departure. Join us in the Aegletia, for His love is boundless, and now, as He prepares to leave us and our concerns behind, He desires to show us that love, that deep affection which is His. Apollon welcomes us all into the fold, so that we may know His embrace, and long for it, as the harsh months pass in His absence.

This is a question that I have heard in one form or another throughout my limited number of years in His service. I had asked this question myself, when I was first beginning, and the answer which I’ve come to understand now, after all this time, is yes… and no.

Yes, He is away from those aspects of His domain that we are most familiar with, those aspects which reflect some part of the human experience, or some part of the natural order in which we all are players. But, there is so much more to His domain than what we can even perceive, so much more that needs its own time to be tended properly.

It is during the Winter months, when our Lord makes His journey into these spaces, that we may feel a deep, unending distance from Him. But, He is not gone away entirely. In these times, He is more introspective, more concerned with the inner, and the innate nature of the Kosmos. It is also a time when He may choose to reveal His own most innate nature.

In the Winter, I see Apollon not as the shining Sun, but as the Twilight, and as the Wolf; as a fierce predator, and swift justice. He is the cold, hard wind, and the absence of social niceties. He is the seclusion of Winter, and thus the revealer of ultimate truth.

I see this as a time for our Lord to gather Himself up and to ponder things which are unknowable to us. But, we may be a comfort to Him, if only we accept that He is not the same in the Winter. We can not simply expect to see the god in the same light, for He is withdrawn from light at this time. In the dark, quiet space is where we shall find Him, where we should seek for Him, and where He waits for us. Because, as I see it, those who feel Him close in the Winter are already in Hyperborea.

Is Hyperborea a place? Yes. As surely as Olympos exists in the realm of the gods, so too does Hyperborea. However, it seems that the Blessed Island also dwells within us, as we shall hopefully dwell in it, when the time comes.

It is said that the Lord Apollon takes His favorites, His swans, to Hyperborea upon their deaths. Perhaps He also allows us to touch the Land there in life, by first walking beside Him in our hearts.

He is still with us, even now. So, do not worry, and do not panic, for the light returns. And the warmth grows nearer with each passing day.

Come with me to Hyperborea
And watch dolphins jump over the wake
My ship sailing through treacherous waters
Through which only our hearts may break

Come with me to the Glittering Garden
Where the whiteness is supreme
I’ll meet you in the flowers
Together, we will sing

Come with me to the Palace
And take off your worry there
I shall bury it in the Garden
And you will not despair

Come with me to the Holy Ground
Tell your secrets to the trees
They will warm and surround you
And cover you in leaves

Come with me to the Meadows
And lay upon the wild grass
Nothing will be the same
From this moment to the last

I am the Captain and the Gardener
And the Lover and the Bee
I will not be satisfied
Until you come with me

— Columbine

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